


Risks

by blueorchidboy



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, Character Death, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Post Season 8, Season 8, Set in the future, allurance, klance, set 5 years after season 8
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-18 15:09:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16997340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueorchidboy/pseuds/blueorchidboy
Summary: “You scare me, Keith Kogane. You scare the hell out of me. But… You’re right. We do have to take risks. And I want to take this risk. With you.”***5 years after saving the universes, Lance stands under Allura's statue and remembers her. He has a conversation with Keith about something that happened between them.





	Risks

**Author's Note:**

> I know everyone is gonna hate season 8 because this fandom sucks and y'all really can't just accept that not everything is gonna go your way. So what if Klance wasn't explicitly canon? Who cares? It was still a great show and even though I'm sad it ended, I still love how it went, and I'll honestly never forget it. I loved season 8, and none of you can take that away from me.

The soft light of the sunset gleams off of the statue of Allura that stands tall and secure over Lance. It’s been five years since she sacrificed herself to save the universe… all universes. He misses her so much… Lance still thinks about her every day. He sees reminders of her everywhere. In the juniberry flowers that grow on his family’s farm, in the sky and the stars and all the memories of saving the universe with her, and in the mirror every day as he touches the Altean marks left on his skin, her final gift to him. Today marks the fifth anniversary of her sacrifice, so today, he stands before her statue and honors her memory.

“She was good, you know.”

Lance looks up to find the source of the voice, seeing Keith approaching behind him.

“Yeah… I know,” Lance says fondly.

“You still miss her?”

Lance sighs and sits down on the ground, “Every day.”

He doesn’t look at Keith as he takes a place next to him on the ground, staring up at Allura’s face, immortalized in marble. Lance hasn’t seen Keith in a while. It’s not because of Keith’s humanitarian efforts with the Blade; even with his work, Keith still finds himself returning to Earth all the time. No, it’s because Lance has been avoiding him.

“So…” Keith begins, unsure of how to proceed, “I uh- I haven’t seen you in a while.”

Ah, so he noticed Lance’s avoidance. Lance looks down at where his hands have fallen into his lap, unresponsive.

“Y-you’re always busy when I come around.”

Lance turns away. He feels the blood rising to his cheeks, and at this moment he really doesn’t want to face Keith.

“Are you avoiding me? L-Lance I’m really sorry. I never meant to step out of line. I understand if I made you uncomfortable…” He trails off, leaving an uncomfortable silence in his wake.

Lance shifts and shrugs before answering, “No. It’s fine Keith, really.”

Keith reaches out to touch his shoulder, a concerned expression adorning his face, but Lance moves out of his grasp. Keith looks down sadly. It is fine. It is. Keith did nothing wrong. It’s Lance’s own fault he feels this way. It was a few months ago, but he remembers what happened as though it were a dream.

***  
“You’re crazy, Lance. There’s no way in hell you’re getting me in that water.”

“Aww come on Keith! Don’t be a wimp. It’s nice in here, really!”

Lance is standing waist-deep in one of the many hot-springs that litter Altea. It’s the middle of the night- the bioluminescent lights of the alien plants and algae light up the darkness surrounding the hot-spring, which is situated deep in the mountains a few miles from the castle. Lance’s Altean marks glow to match the surrounding flora, and he looks happy.

Keith grins, kicking off his shoes and wading into the water, clothes and all. It’s hot, but not unpleasant, and Keith squishes the soft sand between his toes as he meets Lance.

“See? I told you,” Lance says brightly.

Keith trips over a small rock that juts out from the sand, stubbing his toe and falling awkwardly forward. But Lance is there, and he catches Keith in his arms, laughing.

“Guess I’m the one cradling you in my arms now, huh?”

Keith shoots up and gasps, looking scandalized.

“You do remember!”

Lance covers his mouth with a hand as he laughs at the expression on Keith’s face, “yeah, I do. How could I forget that?”

“But- you said you didn’t remember!”

Lance snickers quietly before answering, stepping a little closer to Keith, “Of course I remembered. I just couldn’t deal with it at the time.”

“What do you mean?” Keith says, searching Lance’s eyes for an answer he can understand.

Lance looks back at Keith, “I don’t know, Keith. I was younger, inexperienced. I was in love with Allura and…” He trails off.

“What? What does Allura have to do with it?”

Lance doesn’t answer, face warm. He didn’t intend to say that last part… He silently thanks the universe that Keith is so dense. But as he looks up, Keith is staring at him intensely. He’s moved closer so that their noses are almost touching.

Suddenly, softly, their lips meet. Keith’s lips are dry and warm. They fit so nicely against Lance’s own. Keith pulls Lance into his arms, holding him close. Lance’s heart skips a beat as he presses closer. This is nice. It’s warm and safe. This feels like home. It’s just so… right. But then Allura’s smiling face flashes in Lance’s mind.

His eyes shoot open and he pushes Keith away.

“Lance? Are you alright? What’s wrong?” Keith says.

Lance shakes his head, refusing to answer. He begins to trudge up towards land.

“Lance, talk to me.”

“I- I have to go, Keith. I’m sorry.”

Keith stares after him as Lance picks up his shoes and runs away from the situation, leaving him alone in the dark.

***

In the months following the incident, Keith had seen Lance a handful of times, and had talked to him even less. Every time they saw each other, Lance would get tense and clam up, speaking in short phrases and never giving Keith the time of day. The incident was never brought up. Until now.

“Lance I’m really sorry. I know you don’t feel the same way. I-I should leave. I’m sorry I made things weird,” Keith says, getting up to leave.

“No. It’s not you, Keith. You did nothing wrong.”

Keith sits back down, unsure of what’s wrong. “Then why did you pull away? What’s wrong, Lance. I-,” Keith says. Then, quietly, “I thought maybe… Maybe we had something?” Keith stares after Lance, who has turned to face him, but still won’t meet his eyes.

“We did, Keith,” he sighs, “we did have something- we do? I’m sorry. I fucked this up and I’m sorry. This is my fault.”

Keith is confused. “What do you mean by that? Lance, what happened?”

Lance stares dejectedly at his hands, “I just- It’s Allura, Keith. I do like you. A lot. And we do have something. That kiss didn’t happen for nothing. But I can’t bring myself to move on like that. It doesn’t feel right.”

Oh.

Keith let’s out a breath, studying Lance’s sad expression in the fading light of the sunset. Even in this state, Lance is so beautiful. He always has been. Keith wants nothing more than for him to be happy.

He waits a long moment before speaking up, “Lance… Do you want to move on?”

Lance looks up at him, “well, yeah. I want to move on more than anything. I loved her so much, though. It just feels so weird. I-I’m scared to, Keith.”

Keith brushes his hand softly against Lance’s, gently so as not to scare him off. He looks into Lance’s blue eyes, which sparkle in the soft light.

“Lance, I think Allura would have wanted you to move on. She only wanted what’s best for you. So I think you should do what makes you happy, whatever that is.”

“You’re right… She would want me to move on. But I’m terrified, Keith. What if I fuck this up? What if it doesn’t work out? What will that mean for me? Do I even know how to move on?”

Keith shakes his head softly, “if it doesn’t work out then it doesn’t work out, Lance. I know you’re scared. Honestly? So am I. But we can’t avoid things out of fear. If we did that, then the universe wouldn’t even be here today. None of us would. We’ve got to take risks. I really like you, Lance. I-I love you, even. I have for a long time. I just want you to be happy.”

Lance stares at Keith in awe, “do you think my happiness is with you?”

Keith brings a hand up to Lance’s face, cradling his cheek.

“I don’t know, Lance. That’s not up to me. I think it could be with me.”

Lance smiles softly, apprehension in his eyes. He leans up and leaves a soft, lingering peck on Keith’s lips.

“You scare me, Keith Kogane. You scare the hell out of me. But… You’re right. We do have to take risks. And I want to take this risk. With you.”

Keith smiles, leaning down to press a kiss on Lance’s forehead. They lean into each other, holding one another and watching the Altean sun set over the statue of Allura, smiling down on them with her marble face. She would be happy for them.


End file.
